125 Gallon Reef Tank and Sump

[reeferericb]

My setup is a 125 gallon reef with a Trigger Systems 36” Crystal Elite sump.

My plan that is currently under way is to run the sump in the basement, directly under the tank. I bought all of this used, except for the Neptune equipment under the tank.

I’m not sure I need everything that I purchased, but that may be because I just don’t understand it’s use. I’ll post pictures of what I purchased along with how things are currently set up. Any advice/suggestions will be welcome. Thanks in advance.

When I purchased all of this it did include the mentioned fish. They are currently swimming in a 20 gallon tank. So far everyone seems to be getting along nicely, but I want to transfer them (slowly) into the new tank as soon as I can.

I also have a lot of dry rock (full 38 gallon container) bleach cured and ready to be scaled and cycled.

 

[fishguy242]

'SCORE"....looking forward to seeing this come to life any quustions just askhere for the ride

 

[reeferericb]

Heater placement is a question.
I don’t remember where they were when I bought the setup. There’s only two places they will fit in the sump. Return chamber or refugium. Will there be enough flow in the refugium or will it be too recycled?

 

[fishguy242]

good question,how about one in each? did it come with ground probe? if not ,get one,better safe than sorry

 

[reeferericb]

What’s a ground probe? It will be on a GFCI outlet, not sure if that’s good enough by itself.

 

[fishguy242]

gfci cool ,just google aquarium ground probe,norm 10$ i use 1 in tank,1 in sump,

 

[reeferericb]

Current extras not on the list

Apex controller
2 dosing pumps
1 for water change
1 for dosing calcium and alkalinity when needed
Auto top off
Extra sensors to make RODI station have redundancies
High water sensor for RODI water
Low water sensor to stop water changes when saltwater is empty

plan on getting Trident prior to fish
Also plan on auto fish feeder for vacations

where should I mount Apex sensors? Can they do in sump with skimmer, or is that a bad location?

 

[reeferericb]

I hope this isn’t a bad omen. Started plumbing in the basement and noticed a drip from above. There’s only residual water in the tank from a previous leak test that I didn’t find any leaks. Upon close inspection it is a bulkhead that I replaced on the bottom of the tank. I put another 1/4 turn on it and tested it with a small amount of water. Looks to be holding now, will check again in the morning. Fingers crossed.

 

[reeferericb]

I’m still trying to figure out the stacking of live rock. Here’s where I’m at so far. Will this work?

 

[fishguy242]

looks good to me...but it is what you think matters mostare you gluing together?..personally i don't ,after 30 yrs in the hobby,i still like to change thing around here and there

 

[reeferericb]

looks good to me...but it is what you think matters mostare you gluing together?..personally i don't ,after 30 yrs in the hobby,i still like to change thing around here and there

I haven’t decided on gluing yet. It seems to be pretty solid, so I may leave it loose, just in case. I think there’s some good spots for corals and an anemone. You were able to watch the video? I can’t get it to play.

 

[fishguy242]

yes played fine,just take a minute to load

 

[reeferericb]

I’ll post some updated pictures later today. Thinking about lighting the tank and going with a T5 hybrid light. Is two 36” lights or one 60” light best? Is dimmable lights worth the extra money? I’m looking at the DX18 hybrid, but the 60” version isn’t dimmable. I’m also concerned that it being short would be noticeable as well.

 

[fishguy242]

hi correct ,go with two 36"

 

[reeferericb]

I’ll post this here and possibly in a second thread as well. I’m getting a lot of foaming action in the sump. I’m not sure what I did wrong bleaching my rock, but I believe that’s the culprit. Is there something I can add to the water to save it or do I need to start over? Any advice is welcome.

 

[fishguy242]

Hi,how long running? skimmer going yet?

 

[reeferericb]

Hi,how long running? skimmer going yet?

It’s been running about a day now. I don’t think it soap of any kind. I have a couple drain fittings I forgot to glue and I’m sure it was allowing a lot of air into the sump. I turned off the pump to glue those fittings and the studs went away very fast. I may have some residual bleach in the tank and I’ll treat it with some dechlorinator. I’ll see what that does.

 

[reeferericb]

It’s been running about a day now. I don’t think it soap of any kind. I have a couple drain fittings I forgot to glue and I’m sure it was allowing a lot of air into the sump. I turned off the pump to glue those fittings and the studs went away very fast. I may have some residual bleach in the tank and I’ll treat it with some dechlorinator. I’ll see what that does.

Also, no skimmer running yet. I don’t even have the salt mix added yet. Hoping to get this figured out and start adding salt soon.

 

[fishguy242]

what type of water are you using?rodi?

 

[reeferericb]

what type of water are you using?rodi?

Yes. RODI water